(The Center Square) – The share of Georgia residents who have some or a lot of trust in coronavirus researchers and scientists was 91.1 percent, according to a new study by a consortium of four universities, including Northwestern.

In contrast, 3.5 percent of the state’s residents said their level of trust in COVID-19 researchers and scientists was “Not at all,” and 5.4 percent of state residents responded “Not too much” to how much trust they placed in experts.

Why it Matters: There is a perception on social media based on the loudest voices that Georgians are overwhelmingly distrustful of science as it relates to COVID-19. This study shows that an overwhelming majority of Georgians trust academic and scientific institutions more than political institutions.

Although the overall trust Americans have in their political leaders and institutions to handle the pandemic has dropped in recent months, confidence in medical professionals and researchers exceeded 90 percent in May, the study found. This is less than 2 percentage points below the confidence level expressed a month earlier.

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In contrast, Americans’ trust in all their institutions’ ability to respond to the coronavirus situation has dropped 8 percent since April, the analysis found.

Survey Responses: Trust in COVID-19 Scientists, Researchers

State	Not at All	Not Too Much	Some	A Lot	Error Margin	Number of Respondents
Alabama	4.2%	8.3%	39.7%	47.9%	7.1	352
Alaska	1.7%	8.4%	34.2%	55.7%	11.9	106
Arizona	1.4%	8.0%	37.4%	53.3%	5.5	478
Arkansas	3.1%	10.6%	43.9%	42.4%	7.2	294
California	1.4%	9.1%	31.8%	57.7%	4.1	875
Colorado	1.3%	8.8%	36.5%	53.3%	5.7	389
Connecticut	1.5%	6.8%	33.4%	58.4%	8.3	239
Delaware	2.9%	5.6%	34.8%	56.8%	7.4	260
District of Columbia	0.8%	7.8%	31.6%	59.8%	12.2	121
Florida	1.7%	7.7%	34.8%	55.9%	4.8	604
Georgia	3.5%	5.4%	42.7%	48.4%	5.7	429
Hawaii	0.5%	9.5%	34.6%	55.4%	7.7	272
Idaho	4.1%	6.5%	40.0%	49.4%	6.1	368
Illinois	2.4%	6.8%	34.9%	55.9%	4.6	515
Indiana	2.2%	7.6%	36.5%	53.8%	6.0	376
Iowa	1.6%	4.4%	36.8%	57.2%	7.4	243
Kansas	2.9%	8.4%	35.9%	52.8%	7.8	236
Kentucky	1.7%	7.1%	42.4%	48.9%	6.7	331
Louisiana	2.8%	7.5%	42.1%	47.6%	6.5	362
Maine	2.6%	6.8%	34.1%	56.5%	5.8	368
Maryland	1.6%	7.0%	29.6%	61.8%	5.8	396
Massachusetts	1.3%	3.2%	30.3%	65.2%	5.2	435
Michigan	0.4%	6.9%	39.0%	53.6%	5.2	480
Minnesota	2.0%	6.6%	33.2%	58.2%	6.5	334
Mississippi	4.3%	6.6%	37.5%	51.6%	9.2	229
Missouri	2.1%	10.2%	37.4%	50.2%	5.6	446
Montana	0.0%	7.6%	36.3%	56.1%	11.4	130
Nebraska	2.2%	5.6%	43.4%	48.8%	9.9	159
Nevada	1.2%	5.5%	37.5%	55.7%	7.6	280
New Hampshire	2.9%	4.4%	33.8%	58.9%	5.9	350
New Jersey	0.6%	5.9%	40.0%	53.6%	4.8	526
New Mexico	0.2%	8.1%	35.1%	56.5%	10.9	162
New York	1.1%	6.1%	33.9%	58.9%	4.5	619
North Carolina	2.5%	9.1%	38.1%	50.4%	5.2	511
North Dakota	2.2%	6.9%	33.3%	57.6%	9.1	211
Ohio	4.8%	5.3%	37.7%	52.3%	5.1	476
Oklahoma	2.3%	12.2%	33.2%	52.3%	7.3	287
Oregon	1.4%	5.1%	34.8%	58.7%	5.4	409
Pennsylvania	2.2%	5.0%	36.8%	56.0%	4.6	543
Rhode Island	0.9%	11.1%	34.3%	53.7%	9.1	178
South Carolina	3.8%	7.5%	45.2%	43.5%	6.3	345
South Dakota	1.6%	7.5%	43.5%	47.4%	8.8	179
Tennessee	3.6%	8.1%	37.9%	50.4%	5.8	387
Texas	1.7%	4.4%	43.2%	50.7%	4.8	613
Utah	0.8%	7.9%	38.1%	53.3%	8.1	274
Vermont	1.8%	3.9%	33.4%	60.9%	8.8	162
Virginia	4.5%	6.5%	33.5%	55.5%	5.1	453
Washington	1.8%	5.9%	34.7%	57.6%	5.0	493
West Virginia	1.6%	6.2%	45.1%	47.0%	8.8	195
Wisconsin	2.0%	7.3%	35.6%	55.1%	5.5	419
Wyoming	5.0%	9.5%	32.6%	52.9%	11.1	108